The present invention relates to the testing of cable harness assemblies having planar, multi-conductor cable terminated to insulation displacement contacts (IDC) housed in connectors. Such cable assemblies, their manufacture and testing are disclosed in U.S. Pat. Nos. 4,110,880 and 4,285,118 which issued to Peppler, et al., on Sep. 5, 1978 and Aug. 25, 1981 respectively and U.S. Pat. Nos. 4,870,752 and 4,903,403 which issued to Brown, et al., on Oct. 3, 1989 and Feb. 27, 1990 respectively, these patents being incorporated by reference as though set forth verbatim herein. The first two patents to Peppler, et al. disclose a cable harness making machine that performs an electrical test of the conductive paths for shorts and opens. A manually operable switch is provided for indicating the number of conductors in the cable. Therefore, a switch setting of six would indicate that the planar cable has six conductors and the corresponding connectors to be terminated to the cable have six contacts. If a four conductor cable were to be terminated to this six contact connector, however, there is no way to indicate which four contacts to test for shorts, opens, and continuity.
The two Brown, et al. patents disclose a cable harness making machine that performs electrical testing for shorts and opens at various stages of manufacture of the harness so that a connector will not be inadvertently terminated to a partially completed harness assembly that is defective. As with Peppler, et al., the testing device of Brown, et al. discloses no way to indicate which contacts should be tested when less than all contacts are being used. Additionally, both Peppler, et al. and Brown, et al. disclose testing that is executed in a pre-specified ordering of contacts, that is, pin one of one connector is always tested for continuity with pin one of an adjacent connector. Such a system would not be suitable when several cable assemblies are to be tested, each having a different ordering of contacts.
What is needed is a machine for making and testing a cable assembly having the capability to be directed as to which contacts of a connector are to be tested. Additionally desirable, is a testing capability which will examine a known good cable assembly, determining the contact ordering and continuity paths, and then testing subsequently made cable assemblies to this criteria.